#BookReview The Manual for Good Wives by Lola Jaye @PGCBooks @panmacmillan #TheManualForGoodWives #LolaJaye #PGCBooks Title: The Manual for Good Wives

Author: Lola Jaye

Published by: Pan Macmillan on May 6, 2025

Genres: Historical Fiction

Pages: 400

Format: Hardcover

Source: Publishers Group Canada

Book Rating: 8.5/10

Everything about Adeline Copplefield is a lie . . .

To the world Mrs Copplefield is the epitome of Victorian propriety: an exemplary society lady who writes a weekly column advising young ladies on how to be better wives.

Only Adeline has never been a good wife or mother; she has no claim to the Copplefield name, nor is she an English lady . . .

Now a black woman, born in Africa, who dared to pretend to be something she was not, is on trial in the English courts with all of London society baying for her blood. And she is ready to tell her story . . .

From the author of The Attic Child, Lola Jaye, comes The Manual for Good Wives, a dual narrative historical novel about love, generational trauma, second chances and hope.


Review:

Rich, compelling, and alluring!

The Manual for Good Wives is predominately set in England during the 1800s, as well as present day, and is told from two different perspectives. Temi, an African woman born of noble blood who, after being forced to marry a man she does not love, flees to the UK to start a new life, leaving her husband and daughter behind, and Landri, a young woman who, after having doubts about her new fiancé, heads to her ancestral home where she discovers more about herself and her family history than she ever could have imagined.

The prose is eloquent and expressive. The characters are intelligent, determined, and independent. And the plot is a moving tale about life, loss, love, trauma, emotion, betrayal, family, friendship, heartbreak, resiliency, and courage.

Overall, The Manual for Good Wives is a heart-tugging, absorbing, empowering tale by Jaye that is a wonderful choice for anyone who enjoys a dual timeline historical story that also includes a sliver of mystery and a touch of romance.

 

This book is available now.

Pick up a copy from your favourite retailer or from one of the following links.

         

 

 

Thank you to PGC Books for gifting me a copy in exchange for an honest review.

 

About Lola Jaye

Lola Jaye is an author and psychotherapist who has penned seven novels and a self-help book. She was born and raised in London, England and has lived in Nigeria and the United States.

The Attic Child, released in 2022, was her first epic historical novel and has since been nominated for the Jhalak Prize and shortlisted for The Diverse Book Awards.